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          July Tests W2 wrap: Barrett masterclass adds to D-Mac question

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          What does the future hold for Liam Wright? (3:46)

          The ESPN Scrum Reset discuss Liam Wright's shock promotion to the Wallabies captaincy and his performance against Wales, and whether he could keep the role? (3:46)

          • Brittany Mitchell, ESPN Assistant EditorJul 14, 2024, 11:16 PM ET
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              Brittany Mitchell has been a sports fan from an early age, with a keen interest in netball, cricket and rugby. Brittany interned at Rugby Magazine and the Australian Rugby Union before joining ESPN.
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          Test match rugby doesn't get much better than what we witnessed over the weekend. From an epic arm-wrestle in Auckland, to a to-and-fro battle in Melbourne and Ireland's incredible final minute win in Durban.

          Read on as we review some of the key talking points from the weekend's action.

          BEAUDEN BARRETT MAGIC ONLY ADDS TO D-MAC QUESTIONS

          While Damien McKenzie once again played an important role in the All Blacks playmaking position from the opening minutes of their win over England, it was the injection of Beauden Barrett in the 50th minute that saw New Zealand break free of England's constraints and put themselves in a winning position.

          Neither coach could deny how influential Barrett's 30-minute cameo had been on the result with the 125-Test veteran turning the game on its head with his kicking game to put the pressure straight back on England before he ignited the All Blacks backline with several slick moments. It was reminiscent of the Barrett of 2016 and 2017.

          Just minutes into his appearance the playmaker sent a midfield kick high and deep into England's territory. Originally looking like a nothing kick, it was his speed and pressure in the chase that resulted in Barrett charging down and swooping on England's fullback Freddie Steward, creating the turnover opportunity and then counterattacking from just outside England's 22m.

          He'd follow moments later with another beautiful grubber kick from just inside England's half to see the ball trickle over the line 10-metres out from the tryline.

          With every kick he turned the screws ever tighter on England's defence, eventually leading to the try that would break the match wide open, which again saw Barrett play a key role.

          First with a beautiful flat ball midfield to hard running Tupou Vaa'i he'd then link with McKenzie, spot the mismatch in defence and charge 25m downfield into England's redzone and send the perfect offload to Mark Tele'a for his second try of the night.

          It was a Beauden Barrett special. A try created not just in that singular moment, but for every kick he and McKenzie snuck in behind England's defence, with their connection midfield slicing through the gaps.

          He would come close to creating what could have been one of the most sublime moments on a rugby pitch minutes later when he collected a chip kick just outside his 22, sending up his own chip kick only to catch it with his toe to send another volley into the air and into England's half. It had England's defence turning and scrambling. If only he could have collected his second kick what could have been!

          After two outstanding cameos off the bench it now only adds pressure on All Blacks coach Scott Robertson to determine whether Barrett pushes his way into the starting No.10 position sliding McKenzie to the bench or if he slots the playmaker in at fullback to give himself the double playmaker combination.

          Robertson, of course, played coy when asked this very question following the match, but given his performances in both Dunedin and Auckland, Robertson will need to make a move soon.

          MOMENTS OF MAGIC WON'T BE ENOUGH IN BLEDISLOE ENCOUNTERS

          There wouldn't be much more any Wallabies fans could ask for after Australia saw in two wins in two starts under new coach Joe Schmidt after the Eddie Jones disaster of last year.

          With some magical moments, the Wallabies made it two straight wins for the first time since 2021 and buried their Welsh demons (kind of) with their entertaining 36-28 win in Melbourne. But with only harder opponents on the horizon Schmidt and his squad know they'll need to be much better if they're to put any pressure on the All Blacks or their Rugby Championship rivals.

          Finding themselves pinned on their line after just seven minutes thanks to a loose pass from Noah Lolesio to Tom Wright, fans would have had a sense of déjà vu as they watched the Wallabies seemingly present Wales with a perfect try scoring opportunity.

          Somehow, miraculously, instead of fumbling under the red wave in front of them, Andrew Kellaway dodged one defender, chipped it over the top, chased it down and in an incredible feat of skills tipped the ball down midair to Fraser McReight who'd connect with Filipo Daugunu for the opening score of the match. From one end to the other, 100-metres downfield, four sets of hands, the Wallabies found the line.

          Similar moments would be produced again with Jake Gordon creating his own magical try, before Daugunu would get his second after he snapped up Liam Willaims' attempt at keeping a Lolesio touch finder in play, going 40-metres downfield untouched.

          But there's still plenty they need to work on. Their defensive maul will be first thing on the list given it opened the door for Wales to come right back into the match, there remains a lack of precision across the field, while ill-discipline once again crept into their game.

          GIVE US A SPELL, KOLBE

          For a second straight week Ireland and the Springboks played out an epic encounter in Durban, this time it would be Ireland coming home with the chocolates with Ciaran Frawley sealing the win with a drop kick in the final minute, following his earlier efforts to close the gap.

          But the Springboks, Cheslin Kolbe in particular, refused to let the match go without an unnecessary protest.

          As Frawley collected the ball and lined up for the drop kick, Kolbe can be seen rushing up in defence attempting to charge down the attempt. Instead Caelin Doris stood his ground, forcing Kolbe to swerve around the No.8 which resulted in the wing slipping over before reaching Frawley.

          With next to nothing in the incident, Kolbe prostrated on the ground, claiming he'd been obstructed and taken out by the Ireland players. As tempers flared, push and shove between Springboks and Ireland players resulted, while Karl Dickson was forced to go to the TMO to confirm his decision.

          After wasting minutes replaying the non-incident, the correct decision stood and Ireland were free to celebrate the draw.

          For many fans Kolbe had dived in a sad attempt to sway Dickson's decision, while others took it further taking umbridge at what they believe is an increase of diving in rugby.

          After such an incredible series, which saw two tightly fought, entertaining matches, Kolbe's poor attempt to steal the win left a sour tinge.

          AT LONG LAST, HORROR WALES SEASON COMES TO A CLOSE

          For a second week Wales were in striking distance of ending their losing streak, but failed to take their game to another level, finishing their season on a nine-game winless run.

          While they managed to turn their scrum woes around from the opening Test in Sydney that saw them stumbling backwards, in Melbourne Gareth Thomas was able to pile the pressure on Taniela Tupou, and their rolling maul was a highlight, finding the line on two occasions.

          But their set-piece couldn't maintain its dominance past the halfway mark. The substitution of Dewi Lake clearly made an impact with Wales forced to move away from their strongest weapon of the match as their lineout fell to pieces.

          Liam Williams' well worked try early in the second and Rio Dyer's late in the match to give the side hope, showed the pieces of the puzzle for a winning side are there, how Gatland fits them together remains the key.